When will I be in custody?

Pre-trial detention is the detention of a suspect who has not yet been convicted, so in the end is still innocent. Their primary purpose is pre-trial detention in procedural safeguards, as it is intended to ensure the implementation of orderly criminal proceedings. Otherwise, an accused person could evade the proceedings and the subsequent execution of the sentence (danger of flight), or manipulate sources of evidence (risk of blackout).

As a defendant is still considered innocent until his final conviction, the pre-trial detention is in tension with the so-called presumption of innocence. Although remand detention may not be punitive for the accused, this is an extremely difficult and overwhelming situation for the accused.

For this reason, the written arrest warrant necessary for the order of pre-trial detention may only be issued by a judge (so-called judicial reservation). In addition, further conditions for a lawful pre-trial detention are necessary.

The material requirements of pre-trial detention are stated in § 112 StPO. Accordingly, the pre-trial detention may be ordered only if

• an urgent suspicion exists
• there is a reason for detention
• and the pre-trial detention is not disproportionate to the meaning of the matter and the expected punishment or measure.

According to the general definition, there is an urgent suspicion if, according to the previous state of investigation, there is a high probability that the accused, as the perpetrator or participant, unlawfully and culpably committed a criminal offense.

Delimitation is the urgent suspicion of suspicion and sufficient suspicion. The most urgent suspicion is the urgent suspicion.

The Code of Criminal Procedure mentions four different grounds for detention in § 112 StPO:

• Flight or flight danger
• blackout risk
• Wiederholungsgefahr
• Suspicion of a capital offense

In addition to the urgent suspicion and a reason for detention, the principle of proportionality must also be respected. Accordingly, no pre-trial detention may be ordered if it is disproportionate to the importance of the case and the expectation of legal consequences.

In this context, the importance of the case and the consequences of legal consequences are to be compared with the concrete disadvantages associated with the often far-reaching pre-trial detention (loss of employment, loss of housing, social disadvantages, state of health).

Due to the fact that in the context of a preliminary investigation the events can often overturn and the accused person is overwhelmed with the situation, it is essential to contact a lawyer immediately.